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Tracey Perry, the PC Opposition critic for Industry, brought a resolution to the House of Assembly on Wednesday calling for legislation to require every privately held numbered company operating in the province that does business with...

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

St. John’s, NL (November 21, 2018) – Tracey Perry, the PC Opposition critic for Industry, brought a resolution to the House of Assembly on Wednesday calling for legislation to require every privately held numbered company operating in the province that does business with the provincial government to disclose the identities of the significant shareholders in that company.

The Liberals used their majority to vote the resolution down. Perry said, “It’s shocking that the Liberals want to keep hiding the identities of company owners receiving public money.”

“The purpose of this resolution is to promote openness, transparency and honesty in government by acknowledging the people’s right to know the identities of the owners of companies that are benefiting from government business and taxpayers’ money.” said Perry

“Investors want to invest in jurisdictions where competition is fair and opportunities for patronage are removed. Disclosing the identities of the shareholders of numbered companies that do business with the government is an important step towards greater accountability because it removes opportunities to tip the scales in the shadows. It will make our province more attractive to investors and more open to the business growth we urgently need.” said Perry

For weeks, the PC Opposition has been asking the government to determine the identities of the owners of the numbered company that is leasing land to a cannabis production company benefiting from a $40 million break on tax remittances. The Ball government promised to find out who owns the company, but either cannot find out or will not disclose who the owners are. The nature of the arrangement has been the subject of uncertainty and questions in the House of Assembly for weeks.

“When identities are hidden, people do not have confidence that the playing field is level and contracts are awarded fairly. Disclosure clears the air and sends a message that we are truly open for business.”